Hey, it's been a while. Sorry I haven't updated in months as I was busy with college. I do want to continue this story, though I will be focusing on others.
Note the Action Field used in this chapter is from episode 2. Onto the chapter.
Also, I have a poll up right now and will be closing soon. Please vote if you are interested.
Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh Arc V
The Tag Tournament was progressing much smoother than anticipated. The next set of duels quickly flew by and now the semi-finals were upon them.
Yuto and Necro headed to the arena for their next match. While the duels had been going on, they became more familiar with each other's decks and strategies (though not revealing everything) to coordinate better.
Now they stood ready across from their opponents, whose names were Ryuzu and Mark. Ryuzu had long black hair, red eyes, and wore black clothes entirely. Mark had white hair, yellow eyes, and wore purple clothes.
"Action Field on! Plain Plain!" the announcer shouted as the field came to life.
The duellists were stood on a brown centre surrounded by a large green field, rivers, and bright blue sky.
Rather than just do the chant, the four of them activated their duel disks.
Kaito and Necro LP: 8000 Cards in hand: Both 5
Ryuzu and Mark LP: 8000 Cards in hand: Both 5
"DUEL!" they shouted as action cards were dispersed across the field.
"I'm going first!" Ryuzu declared. "I summon Black Dragon's Chick (Dark/Level 1/Dragon/800 ATK/500 DEF)." A small dragon out of a hatched egg appeared giving a small squeal. "Next I activate its effect. By tributing this card, I can special summon one Red-Eyes Black Dragon (Dark/Level 7/Dragon/2400 ATK/2000 DEF) from my hand."
A large black dragon appeared roaring, much to Yuto's shock. During the invasion, he had heard tales of a duellist who used a similar card type from those lucky enough to escape. He never would have thought it existed here.
"Next I activate the spell Inferno Fire Blast! By targeting one Red-Eyes Black Dragon, I can inflict damage equal to its ATK!"
Without warning, the dragon fired a red blast from its mouth which consumed its targets before they could react.
Kaito and Necro LP: 5600 Cards in hand: Both 5
"The only downside is that the selected dragon can't attack this turn," Ryuzu explained. "I set one card and end my turn!"
Necro scowled. It was only the first turn of the duel and already they were down a quarter of their LP.
"My turn!" Necro shouted. "I set summon Djinn Presider of Rituals (Dark/Level 4/Warrior/1800 ATK/1400 DEF). I set one card and end my turn!"
Although his hand was not bad, he did not want to Ritual summon right away.
"My turn!" Mark shouted. "I activate the spell Soul Exchange! This turn I can tribute summon using one of my opponent's monsters, however, in return I can't conduct my battle phase." Necro's eyes widened. "I offer your Djinn as a sacrifice in order to summon Summoned Skull (Dark/Level 6/Fiend/2500 ATK/1200 DEF)."
A bolt of lightning flashed through the sky and from the ground rose a demonic creature with a skeletal appearance.
"Shit!" Necro cursed. "Taking my monster like that."
"I have to admit it's a clever strategy," Yuto said softly. "Using card effects that would cost them the chance to battle on the very first turn when they cannot. Most people wouldn't think of doing that."
"Finally, I set one card and end my turn!" Mark finished.
Yuto glanced down at his hand. Depending on what the enemy did would influence his next move.
"My turn!" Yuto shouted. "I summon Phantom Knights: Ancient Cloak (Dark/Level 3/Warrior/800 ATK/1000 DEF)." A creature with purple and red robes and staves for arms appeared. "Because there is a Phantom Knights monster on the field, I can special summon Phantom Knights: Silent Boots (Dark/Level 3/Warrior/200 ATK/1200 DEF)!"
'Two-level threes. That means he's going to,' Ryuzu thought.
"I overlay level 3 Ragged Gloves and Silent Boots! Souls of warriors fallen on the battlefield, revive now and become light to render the darkness! XYZ Summon! Appear before us! Rank 3, Phantom Knights: Break Sword (Dark/Rank 3/Warrior/XYZ/2000 ATK/1000 DEF)!" Yuto chanted.
LDS Control Room
Alarms rang throughout the control room as employees scrambled to pinpoint its location.
Reiji observed the screens with a stoic expression, seemingly unbothered by the noise.
"President," one employee called. "It's the same energy from before, and from the same location."
Reiji narrowed his eyes. Was it a different duellist this time? Why else would it happen in the same place?
Instead of asking, Reiji looked up the very location in the databases. Much to his surprise, there was a Tag Tournament being held there. Did that mean the XYZ user was a participant?
Looking through the matches he saw the current one was Kaito and Necro against Ryuzu and Mark. It had been Kaito's turn, and he had just XYZ summoned.
"Nakajima?" Reiji called.
No answer, much to his surprise.
"Nakajima?" he repeated.
Again, no answer. This time he was worried. Nakajima normally answered his calls.
Had something happened?
Back at the tournament
Nakajima stared in shock at what he was watching, or rather who.
Just now, having performed an XYZ summon was none other than Yuya Sakaki. Or rather, someone who looked like him. There were certain differences that were easy to pinpoint such as hair and eye colour, clothing, demeanour, and deck.
Nakajima could not say for sure, but during his duel with the President powerful XYZ energies went off and from a separate source.
'Was this why Sawatari accused him that time?' Nakajima wondered. 'They look similar in face but not much else. Then again, Sawatari does not have a high opinion of Sakaki since he lost their duel. Still, Yuzu Hiragi was also present during the incident. Why didn't she say anything? Did she also mistake him for Sakaki?'
There were a lot of questions surrounding this that he didn't have the answers to, yet.
The President had called several times, only for him to remain silent. Although he disliked not answering, he wanted to wait until the duel was over before reporting his findings.
Back to the duel.
"I set two cards and end my turn!" Yuto declared.
"My turn! Draw!" Ryuzu smirked at the card he drew. "Time to kick things up a notch. I activate the spell card Fusion!"
Yuto's blood froze upon hearing that evil card mentioned. Was this person really going to?
"The monsters I choose to fuse are Red-Eyes Black Dragon and Gearfried the Red-Eyes Iron Knight (Dark/Level 4/Warrior/1800 ATK/1600 DEF). Ferocious dragon with crimson eyes, merge with your armoured knight to create a new power! Fusion Summon! Come forth! Level 7, Red-Eyes Slash Dragon (Dark/Level 7/Dragon/2800 ATK/2400 DEF)!" Ryuzu chanted.
Red-Eyes Black Dragon disappeared, and in its place stood a more terrifying version. The is Red-Eyes was dressed in armour with red jewels and a scythe attached to the arm. The dragon let out a roar at its opponents that pushed their hair back.
Yuto could only stare at the dragon in utter horror. The feeling of fun he had felt in his first duel was replaced by fear.
Suddenly, he was no longer in Standard, he was back home in Heartland watching helplessly as Academia soldiers brought out their abominations to annihilate them. The screams of people, of his friends, filled his ears as the soldiers began to card them for sport, their sadistic laughter ringing loudly. His home burned to the ground and turned into a battlefield as they fought for survival. And he could not do anything to stop it.
No, he was not in Standard. He was on a battlefield.
"Oi, Kaito," Necro's voice called out, snapping Yuto out of his trance. "You alright?"
One minute his partner looked focused, but the minute that card was played he looked scared. He knew what a panic attack looked like, he had seen them before, and right now Kaito was on the verge of one.
"I'm fine," Yuto lied quickly. He then turned to the Fusion monster and glared hatefully. "We're taking that thing down!"
It was not a mere statement it was a matter of fact.
As curious as he was about his teammates change in demeanour, now was not the time to question it.
"Trap card open! Red-Eyes Fang with Chain!" Ryuzu shouted. "By equipping this to Slash Dragon, it can attack up to twice per turn. However, I won't be keeping it. I send Fang with Chain to the GY to activate its other effect where I can target one effect monster on the field and equip it to this card, however its ATK and DEF change to the equipped monsters. I target Break Sword!" Yuto could only watch as his monster was taken from him. "And now Slash Dragons ATK and DEF changes (2800-2000 ATK/2400-1000 DEF). Battle Phase! Slash Dragon attacks you directly! And in doing so his effect activates! When a Red-Eyes monster declares an attack, I can target one warrior monster in my GY and equip it to Slash Dragon, increasing its ATK and DEF by 200. I target Gearfried and equip him to Slash Dragon (2000-2200 ATK/1000-1200 DEF)."
Slash Dragons armour suddenly changed form. It took on some extra plates of a different colour that resembled Gearfried.
Yuto braced himself for what was coming. His face downs would do him no good in this moment.
"Go! Inferno Blade Blast!" Ryuzu shouted as Slash Dragon unleashed a powerful red beam that split up into different sections to hit them both.
"Trap card open! Urgent Ritual Art!" Necro shouted. "Now I can."
"I don't think so! Trap activate! Seven Tools of the Bandit! For the price of 1000LP, your traps effect is negated and destroyed," Mark explained.
Ryuzu and Mark LP: 7000 Cards in hand: Ryuzu 0 Mark 2
Necro scowled in frustration as his trap was nullified. Yuto wasn't much better when the attack hit them full force, bringing them both to their knees.
Kaito and Necro LP: 3400 Cards in hand: Necro 3 Kaito 1
Both boys grunted as their LP was depleted even further to below half at the start.
"I end my turn!" Ryuzu finished.
"My turn! Draw!" Necro let out a big smile at the card he drew. "I activate the Ritual Spell Nekroz Kaleidoscope! This allows me to Ritual summon multiple Ritual monsters at once for the price of one! and the best part, I can offer a monster from my extra deck as the tribute!"
"What!" Mark shouted.
"From your extra deck!" Ryuzu added.
Necro nodded as a card was ejected from his extra deck zone. Yuto was surprised at such a move, but that quickly turned to horror when he saw what type of monster it was.
"I send Level 12 Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon (Light/Level 12/Dragon/Fusion/4500 ATK/3800 DEF) to the GY. And now, I can Ritual summon monsters equal to the level of the tribute!" In the centre of the arena, a large mirror accompanied by several large mirror fragments of appeared. The mirror was surrounded by blues flames equal to the offerings level. Then the mirror absorbed the flames and Necro began to chant. "Majestic unicorn and fierce Valkyrie of the Fabled! Through this ritual be reborn as magicians and destroy your enemies! Double Ritual Summon! Come forth! Level 4 Nekroz of Unicore (Water/Level 4/Spellcaster/Ritual/2300 ATK/1000 DEF)! Level 8 Nekroz of Valkyrus (Water/Level 8/Spellcaster/Ritual/2900 ATK/1700 DEF)!"
From the mirrors, there was an explosion light and two new figures stood in place. One had a purple cape, white hair and armour, a turquoise trident, and on his forehead a crown with a horn sticking out (Unicore). The other possessed an armoured attire of purple, violet, and red, accompanied with a trident and long purple hair (Valkyrus).
The audience was shocked at what they had just witnessed. As rare as Ritual was these days, they had never heard of anyone Ritual summoning two monsters at once.
Yuto gazed at his partner with an uncomfortable expression. He had a Fusion monster. Why? Necro said his deck focused on Ritual, so why did he have a Fusion monster? Did that mean he was Fusion User?
Logically, Yuto knew these people were not Academia, and that Fusion was not a bad thing to them. Even still, he did not feel comfortable seeing cards related to the method.
"I activate Unicores effect! The effects of monsters summoned from the extra deck are negated!" Ryuzu scowled. Since it was not targeting his monster, he could not negate the effect. Slash Dragon (2200-2000 ATK/1200-1000 DEF). "Battle Phase! Unicore strike down Red-Eyes Slash Dragon!"
Ryuzu desperately searched for an action card but could not find one in time. Unicore hurled its trident at Slash Dragon piercing its armour and heart in the process.
Ryuzu and Mark LP: 6700 Cards in hand: Ryuzu 0 Mark 3
"Now Valkyrus, attack Summoned Skull!" Necro shouted.
"Action Magic – Miracle!" Mark countered. "My monster is not destroyed, and battle damage is halved."
There was a minor explosion but once the dust faded it showed Summoned Skull standing in its place.
Ryuzu and Mark LP: 6500 Cards in hand: Ryuzu 0 Mark 2
"Tch," Necro scowled. "I end my turn."
He didn't know when he had gotten that Action card, only that it prevented his monster's destruction.
"My turn! Draw!" Mark stared down at his hand, calculating his next set of steps. "I activate the spell Lightning Strike! By targeting Summoned Skull on the field and then one monster, that monster is destroyed, and you take damage equal to half of its ATK! However, Summoned Skull cannot declare and attack this turn. I target Nekroz of Valkyrus!"
Necro and Yuto's paled as the demonic creature raised its hand and shot yellow lightning at Necro's monster quicker than they could blink.
A loud explosion took place as Necro's monster was eradicated.
Kaito and Necro LP: 1950 Cards in hand: Necro 1 Kaito 1
"Next I'll play Monster Reborn and bring back my partner's Red-Eyes Black Dragon (Dark/Level 7/Dragon/2400 ATK/2000 DEF). But why stop there? I activate the spell Fusion!" Mark shouted.
'Again?' Yuto thought unnerved. 'Why Fusion? Why not something else?'
Once again, Necro took notice of his partner's reaction. Why was it every time someone Fusion summoned, he looked scared?
"The monsters I choose to fuse are Summoned Skull and Red-Eyes Black Dragon. Demonic skull born in lightning, become one with the ferocious dragon with crimson eyes to forge a new power! Fusion Summon! Level 9 Black Skull Dragon (Dark/Level 9/Dragon/Fusion/3200 ATK/2500 DEF)!" Mark chanted.
Dark clouds gathered as black and red lightning raged travelled between them with thunder booming out. From the clouds came a combination between the two monsters, Summoned Skull with wings and dragon face, roaring out.
"Battle phase! Black Skull Dragon attack Nekroz of Unicore!" Mark commanded.
Yuto was not having a single moment of it. He knew exactly how damaging Fusion monsters could be, and he refused to let this one do the same.
"Trap activate! Half Unbreak! I target Unicore and for this turn he can't be destroyed by battle and all damage is halved!" Yuto shouted.
Unicore was wrapped in a protective bubble that bounced the attack off it.
Kaito and Necro LP: 1350 Cards in hand: Necro 1 Kaito 1
"Thanks for that," Necro said.
"No problem," Yuto replied. "I may need to use your monster next turn though. That alright with you?"
"If it will help us out of this mess then sure," the Ritual user grunted.
"Turn end!" Mark finished, though there was an obvious hint of annoyance in his voice.
"My turn! Draw!" Yuto's eyes widened. He rarely got the chance to use this card, and now it was here when he needed it most. "I summon Phantom Knights: Cloven Helm (Dark/Level 4/Warrior/1500 ATK/500 DEF). Next, I overlay him and Nekroz of Unicore! Formed from pitch-black darkness, to fight those foolish enough to oppose its treacherous fangs! Descend, now! XYZ Summon! Rank 4, Dark Rebellion XYZ Dragon (Dark/Rank 4/Dragon/XYZ/2500 ATK/2000 DEF)!"
Yuto's ace monster arrived bellowing out a powerful roar. Its anger mirroring his own.
Necro stared at the monster in awe. There was something different about it, something powerful.
"I activate the spell Treason Discharge!" Yuto exclaimed.
Insert theme: Arc V Sound Duel 4: #11 Dueling With Your Life On The Line
"This card can only be activated while Dark Rebellion is on the field. During the end phase of this turn, his ATK becomes 0," Yuto explained, much to his opponent's confusion. "However, it's well worth it. I activate Dark Rebellions effect! By detaching one overlay unit, I can target one level 5 or higher monster on the field and cut its ATK in half, giving it to Dark Rebellion in the process. Treason Discharge!"
Dark Rebellion spread its wings and fired electricity at Black Skull Dragon, weakening it in the process.
Black Skull Dragon (3200-1600 ATK).
Dark Rebellion XYZ Dragon (2500-5700 ATK).
"What the hell!" Mark shouted. "Your dragon's ATK increased exactly by Black Skull Dragons, not half!"
"Treason Discharge's effect," Yuto responded. "This turn, it doubles all ATK boosts Dark Rebellion receives from his effect. Lucky for me, that effect can be used more than once this turn." The opponents face turned pale as they started running around looking for an action, as did Necro. "Once again, I activate Dark Rebellions effect! Treason Discharge!"
Black Skull Dragon (1600-800 ATK).
Dark Rebellion XYZ Dragon (5700-7300 ATK).
The audience were going wild with excitement. If this attack succeeded, the duel would be over.
"Battle Phase! Dark Rebellion XYZ Dragon attack Black Skull Dragon!" Yuto commanded.
"Action Magic – Great Escape!" Ryuzu countered. "The battle phase ends!"
"Action Magic – No Action!" Necro countered. "This turn action cards can't be used so that's useless!"
Both opponents grimaced. There was nothing they could do now.
"Go Dark Rebellion! Revolt of Lightning Disobey!" Yuto shouted.
Dark Rebellion tore through Black Skull putting an end to the wicked creature, and by extension, the duel.
Ryuzu and Mark LP: 0 Cards in hand: Ryuzu 0 Mark 0
The action field dispersed leaving the duellists on the field by themselves.
Unlike before, there was no conversation as their opponents just turned heel and left. Yuto and Necro left as well. However, Necro had some things he needed to discuss with his partner first.
In a random hall
"You wanna tell me what that was all about?" Necro demanded.
"What?" Yuto replied a little startled by the question.
"Don't bullshit me Kaito," Necro snapped. "I've seen enough of it in my lifetime to know it at first glance. During the match what happened? The minute they Fusion summoned you looked like you were about to have a panic attack. So, out with it!"
Yuto silently cursed himself for being so obvious. He couldn't help it though. The second they used that card he just… remembered. He knew he was in Standard; he knew that. But seeing that card be used, it was like he was back at home when the invasion started.
"Hey, it's been three minutes since I asked and you've been staring off into space," Necro interrupted in a concerned tone. "You alright?"
Maybe he shouldn't have asked at all. He had had enough bad experiences and met enough people with them to know what trauma looked like.
Yuto bit his lip, unsure of whether to answer or not. Partner or not, this man was a stranger and could possibly understand his life.
"Look Kaito, you don't have to tell me anything. Although, I am curious. Did something bad happen to you involving a Fusion user? Is that why you're so apprehensive about the method?" Necro pushed.
Yuto took a minute to compose himself before answering.
"That's one way of putting it," he admitted softly.
He did not elaborate any further, but Necro would not force him to, knowing it would not end well.
"I can't give you the specifics but, Fusion is not a good thing, far from it," Yuto told him. "And I would advise against anyone else using it."
Necro sighed. "You referring to the cards I used in our duel?"
Yuto stared down at the floor. "I thought you only used Ritual."
"I do," Necro retorted earning a look from Yuto. "I don't use Fusion Kaito. I have some Fusion and Synchro monsters stored in my extra deck but I only use them as ammo for Ritual Summon. Remember the Ritual I used last time, Nekroz Kaleidoscope? They are for that. I don't actually summon them, though I suppose I could if I revived them."
Yuto stared into his eyes. Necro was not lying. At the same time, he did not know how to feel about the way he used them. It was not Fusion Summon, but they still belonged to the category. Maybe he was just being paranoid but after everything that had happened, who could really blame him?
"Never mind that though, we've got out next match," Necro started as he started walking away.
Yuto remained still for a moment before following. It was the finals now. He could get through that.
As much as he hoped his opponents didn't use Fusion he would need to focus on winning. After all, he needed the money for both food, and a new outfit.
Hi there. Well, what did you think of that?
I was going to finish the Tag Tournament this chapter, but I decided to leave the finale until the next one and let you enjoy this duel. Since I started off with a few classic cards, I decided to continue the trope and use some cards from the original series, with an OC card or two added. Yuto and Necro were supposed to duel someone else but I changed it because I want them to appear later in the story. I also chose to keep the duel simple.
I also wanted to take this chapter to explore a bit of what Yuto was going through. Yes, he has had a bit of fun with duelling, but he is still a boy who watched his homeland destroyed and many civilians carded. Months of that are not just going to go away after a few duels. To put it simply, he suffers from PTSD.
Also, while he does acknowledge Standard is not Academia, he is still uncomfortable with Fusion, albeit unlike Shun he doesn't attack everyone who uses it. Yuto will become more accepting of the method as time goes on but for now he still hates it.
Next chapter will conclude the tournament, while the one after that will focus on Yuzu and what she was doing during that time. Despite the amount of duels he has had, Yuzu is the main protagonist of the story, though I suppose Yuto would be the deutertagonist or main male protagonist.
OC Cards:
Lightning Strike (Spell Card): Activate only if Summoned Skull is on the field. Target one monster your opponent controls and destroy it. Your opponent takes damage equal to half its ATK. You cannot attack with Summoned Skull the turn you activate this card.
Treason Discharge (Spell Card): Activate only if you have Dark Rebellion XYZ Dragon on the field. This turn if it gains ATK from its effect, it is doubled. During the end phase of this turn, its ATK and DEF becomes 0.